The Mail reports that the LibDems have agreed to support the Tories in a bombshell vote tomorrow on changing parliamentary rules to allow a secret ballot to eject the Speaker.

A motion will be put before the House proposing a Procedure Committee recommendation to allow a secret ballot. Despite Labour claims of a Tory stitch up, the recommendation was made by a cross-party committee including Labour MPs. Guido is told that the move was made by William Hague at 5:30pm this evening, and that “Gove must think we have the votes”. The LibDems, and their Deputy Leader of the Commons Tom Brake, were convinced to support the motion after turning on Bercow “when he gave Danny Alexander a bollocking” last week. It is said that the vast majority of the Tory backbenches will support the motion, as well as much of the payroll vote.

The Speaker cannot be seen to be ringing people up asking for support ahead of the vote, so his lieutenants will be working overtime. UKIP will be supporting Labour in the vote, yet most Labour MPs are back in their constituencies. Who will be in the chair: Bercow, or Lindsay Hoyle, the man the plotters want to replace him?

Quote of the Day

Writing in this week’s Spectator Diary, the former Chancellor and Evening Standard editor attempted to encapsulate how Boris operates…

“My children have the measure of our prime minister. A couple of years ago, my son and I went for a lovely Sunday lunch at his house in Oxfordshire — where he has a Kalashnikov mounted on the wall. Boris suggested we play a game. A tug of war, but with a difference. The rope is tied around your waist and the contest takes place across a swimming pool. If you lose you end up in the water, fully clothed.

That’s Johnson for you: fun, inventive but ruthless. I suspect his brother Jo had one ducking too many.”